A ‘ghost market’ hangs on in the shadow of Shenzhen’s hi-tech ambitions
- This is part of an occasional series on tech in Shenzhen, the city that has been called “China’s Silicon Valley”
- The night market takes place after dark in Huaqiangbei, the world’s biggest electronics wholesale district
Huaqiangbei is home to the world’s biggest electronics wholesale market. By day, the district is busy with buyers hunting for bargains in gigantic complexes that sell everything from cables to to spy cameras.
But close to midnight, not long after the hardiest stall owners have called it a day, another market emerges in the shadows of the mega electronics malls.
When the Post visited the market one recent weekday night, street vendors were out in force on Aihua Lu, fighting for the attention of passers-by. There were careless heaps of cables, old game consoles, transistor radios, smartphones, feature phones on the road, most of it junk.
Known as a “ghost” market because it only operates at night and wraps up before dawn (the better to avoid the dreaded chengguan, or street inspectors), this particular flea market convenes every night and has been going on for a number of years. There are three unspoken rules: No questioning the authenticity, no questioning the origin, and no refunds once sold.
It is the ultimate buyers’ beware bazaar. What you see is what you get.
“Why are you wandering outside so late?” one male trader wearing a gold necklace shouted cheerfully at us when we passed by his pile. “Please be careful. Go home now!”
